The Practice of Gongyo

The Liturgy of Nichiren Daishonin

The Meaning of Gongyo

(Source: Lectures on the Sutra: The Hoben and Juryo Chapters)

On many occasions throughout the Gosho, Nichiren Daishonin refers to himself as "a votary of the Lotus Sutra." By that he means someone who translates every word of the Lotus Sutra into action and shows undeniable proof of the truth that it contains. After Shakyamuni, T'ien-t'ai in China and Dengyo in Japan each interpreted and spread the Lotus Sutra as votaries of the sutra in their own age, the Middle Day of the Law. In the Latter Day of the Law, Nichiren Daishonin propagated the sutra and lived its teachings exactly, fulfilling its predictions.

He also revealed in its entirety the ultimate Law implicit in the Lotus Sutra. The sutra mentions this one great Law in various ways but does not define it specifically. Nichiren Daishonin revealed it as Nam-myoho-renge-kyo of the Three Great Secret Laws, and through this clarification, he pointed the way for all people to overcome their sufferings and for each individual to attain enlightenment. For this reason, too, he called himself "the votary of the Lotus Sutra."

Nichiren Daishonin not only revealed Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, but embodied this great Law in the Dai-Gohonzon, the object of worship for attaining Buddhahood in the Latter Day of the Law. The Dai-Gohonzon is the concrete manifestation of Nichiren Daishonin's enlightenment to the Law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. For that reason, the Dai-Gohonzon embodies the perfect fusion of the Law, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, and the Person, Nichiren Daishonin. The "Ongi Kuden" (Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings) states, "The Buddha eternally endowed with the three properties [the Buddha of kuon ganjo or the original Buddha] is the votary of the Lotus Sutra in the Latter Day of the Law." (Gosho Zenshu p. 752) It also states, "The object of worship is the entity of the life of the votary of the Lotus Sutra."(Gosho Zenshu p. 752). "The votary of the Lotus Sutra" here means the Buddha of the Latter Day of the Law, who is Nichiren Daishonin.

The most basic practice in Nichiren Daishonin's Buddhism is gongyo, which consists of reciting portions of the Lotus Sutra and chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo (daimoku) to the Gohonzon. Doing this daily, morning and evening, serves to praise the power and greatness of the Gohonzon and to unite our life with the Gohonzon. Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is called the primary practice, and enables us to fuse our life with the Gohonzon. Reciting portions of the Lotus Sutra is called the supplementary practice, and helps fulfill the primary goal of fusing one's life with the Gohonzon.

One might wonder how reciting the Lotus Sutra could be efficacious when one cannot understand the sutra's meaning. Actually, a great many [Soka Gakkai] believers perform gongyo without understanding its meaning; this is true of many Japanese and Chinese people as well as those of other nations. The version of the Lotus Sutra we recite in gongyo is taken from the translation Kumarajiva made from Sanskrit into Chinese, and uses the same characters which are now utilized in the Chinese and Japanese languages. The phraseology is archaic, however, and quite different from modern Chinese or Japanese. It is no easy task, even for [Soka Gakkai] believers who can read Chinese characters, to understand the meaning of what they are reciting.

Most of us recite the Lotus Sutra during gongyo without a clear, precise understanding of its words. Its essence, however, lies within the depths of our lives, in the realm of the unconscious mind, where we can grasp the ultimate meaning of the Lotus Sutra. Reciting the Lotus Sutra enables us to praise the Gohonzon with our entire being and assists us, as we chant daimoku, in becoming one with the object of worship. Through the practice of gongyo we can experience the inexhaustible life force of Buddhahood which rises from the depths of our being.

The Lotus Sutra consists of twenty-eight chapters, and among these, the second or Hoben chapter and the sixteenth or Juryo chapter are especially important. The Lotus Sutra's preeminence among all the sutras lies in its assertion that all people can become Buddhas as Shakyamuni did, and in its philosophy which provides the theoretical explanation for this possibility.

In the Hoben chapter Shakyamuni begins to impart his enlightenment to his disciples. He reveals for the first time that all people have equal potential to attain Buddhahood. In the Juryo chapter he declares that he actually attained Buddhahood before this lifetime-in the distant past called gohyaku jintengo. By revealing his own Buddhahood to be of such long duration, he points to the Buddha nature eternally inherent in all human beings. Nichiren Daishonin taught that Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the Law Shakyamuni revered to attain Buddhahood in the distant past of gohyaku-jintengo. By reciting the Juryo chapter, we are praising the great power of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, and by reciting the Hoben chapter, we express the belief that this power of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, which is inherent in our lives, will become manifest and lead us toward Buddhahood. With this expectation deep in our lives we praise the supreme Law, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.

While we praise the Law, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, we also express gratitude to the Person, Nichiren Daishonin. Reciting the Juryo chapter is an expression of gratitude to Nichiren Daishonin, who first revealed the Law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, which is the teacher of all the Buddhas of past, present and future. Reciting the Hoben chapter, on the other hand, gives voice to our awe and respect for the Daishonin as the Buddha who made it possible for us, the people in the Latter Day of the Law, to become Buddhas and enjoy the same state of enlightenment as his own.

The Hoben and Juryo chapters are clearly the most important chapters in the Lotus Sutra, and that is why the Gosho exhorts us to recite the Hoben and Juryo chapters and chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.

The word Hoben, literally "means," here indicates preparatory teachings which are meant to lead people to the true teaching. To illustrate, they function like a bus, car or train carrying us from home to school or office. If study or work is the destination, then hoben is the means of getting there. Since both study and work are vital to improve life and be able to live a more truly human existence, these "means" are very important, indeed.

One reason the Hoben chapter is so called is because in it, Shakyamuni declares the preparatory nature of everything taught in the forty-two years before he expounded the Lotus Sutra. Everything was aimed only at leading people to the Lotus Sutra. This chapter is a statement, then, that the Lotus Sutra is the only true teaching. It is also called the Hoben chapter because it reveals that the life-activities of common mortals of the nine worlds are the means by which they manifest Buddhahood.

If, as the Hoben chapter shows, the Buddha nature is intrinsic to our lives and we are therefore potential Buddhas, to manifest the Buddha nature is the goal, and the nine worlds are the means to attain it. For example, everyone has problems in daily life. They may be family troubles, difficulties at work, or character flaws. But when those problems compel us to pray to the Gohonzon, they become the "means" which lead to our human revolution.

The meaning of hoben also applies to Shakyamuni's teaching in the Lotus Sutra itself. The sutra is basically a "means" leading to the ultimate truth, which is Nam-myoho-renge-kyo of the Three Great Secret Laws. Not even in the Lotus Sutra itself did Shakyamuni Buddha clearly reveal the Law to which he was enlightened.

Nichiren Daishonin revealed this ultimate truth in the Latter Day of the Law. Even then, from one perspective, what the Daishonin taught is still a means-the only means in the Latter Day-to attain our enlightenment. Through our faith, practice and study based on the Gohonzon, in which the Daishonin embodied his enlightenment, we experience the truth in the depths of our being and make it the basis of our lives. As Nichiren Daishonin wrote to Lady Nichinyo, "Never seek this Gohonzon outside yourself. The Gohonzon exists only within the mortal flesh of us ordinary people who embrace the Lotus Sutra and chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo." ('Major Writings vol. 1, p.213.)

So far in this discussion we have talked about means as distinguished from the end, truth or result. But we also find instances where the means is not only closely connected to the end but also becomes the end in itself. The purpose of participating in sports, for example, is not merely to win a gold medal. An even greater purpose is the strengthening of one's body and mind through the serious pursuit of sports. In this case, means and end are inseparable.

In Buddhism a preparatory teaching (means) which simultaneously contains the true teaching (end) is called himyo hoben. Hi means "hidden," that is, the truth hidden in the preparatory teachings; myo means "beyond conception" or "unfathomable." In this sense, the hoben or "means" referred to in the second chapter are both teachings preliminary to the truth and, looking more deeply, teachings containing the truth.

Now let us reconsider what we have said so far about hoben in light of himyo hoben. From this perspective, it is apparent that the sutras taught before the Lotus Sutra are not merely preparatory teachings set down to lead people to the true teaching, but each of them contains part of the truth. Even so, the entire truth is contained only in the Lotus Sutra. After grasping the truth in the Lotus Sutra, we can go back to the pre-Lotus Sutra teachings and discover important points even within the partial truths they contain. When a part of the truth is seen within the context of the whole, it can be a trustworthy guide.

A similar relationship exists between Buddhahood and the other nine worlds. In a sense, the nine worlds are no more than a means to achieve the highest state of Buddhahood, but consider whether the Buddha's life could exist without the nine worlds. Even to imagine such a possibility is to miss the whole point of the Lotus Sutra's teaching. There can be no state of Buddhahood without the other nine worlds; they are necessary and integral components of life. As long as human beings are composed of flesh and blood, whether they are Buddhas or not, they will have the desires and instincts indispensable to living as men and women. They intrinsically possess all of the nine worlds, from Hell to Bodhisattva. The nine worlds are each distinct states, but they are also inseparable, and, when based on the Law of life, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, they all work to create value within the dynamics of one's external circumstances.

Parts must be related to the whole in order to be of any use. If an arm is separated from the body, it cannot function. Only when an arm is part of the body can it fulfill the specific functions of writing, painting or holding things. When we base our lives on the Mystic Law, the ultimate truth of life, all our activities in human society will produce value. We do this by practicing gongyo. It connects us directly to the Mystic Law, and thus enables us to live with vigor, purpose and positive results.

We have said that Shakyamuni's teachings in the Lotus Sutra are the "means" and the "truth" is Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. And from one viewpoint, even the practice Nichiren Daishonin revealed and taught is a means leading to the "end" of attaining Buddhahood. However, from a deeper viewpoint, carrying out this means in itself contains the end. Reciting the Lotus Sutra and chanting daimoku is the means, while manifesting Buddhahood is the end. However, we manifest Buddhahood in the very act of reciting the Lotus Sutra and daimoku; the means and the end are thus inseparable.

The Juryo chapter reveals the unfathomable depth and duration of Shakyamuni's enlightenment. Hence the title: Ju means the Buddha's life span, specifically that of Shakyamuni, and ryo means to fathom. To "fathom the Buddha's life span" means to know how long he has been the Buddha. It does not mean that the Juryo chapter reveals the "eternity of life" itself Belief in the eternity of life was widespread among virtually all ancient Indian philosophers long before the advent of Buddhism and therefore did not merit discussion in the Juryo chapter. The chapter focuses on the length of Shakyamuni's life as a Buddha, i.e., how much time has passed since he originally attained Buddhahood.

Here Shakyamuni introduces an unimaginably distant time called gohyaku-jintengo, when he first attained Buddhahood, and declares that since that time he has always been teaching the Law in this world to save humankind. His contemporaries looked upon Shakya-muni as a prince who began religious austerities as a youth and finally became enlightened at Buddhagaya. No one even considered the possibility that he might have been a Buddha before then, and when he did attain Buddhahood, they thought it was because he was someone special. The Juryo chapter showed the error of their views.

Still people were doubtful. They wondered why the Buddha, having attained enlightenment long ago, was born a common mortal who carried out religious practices just as others who are still seeking the Way do. Why was he not born a Buddha, they wondered. The answer to this question is that even when one has attained Buddhahood, the other nine worlds do not disappear from his life. A Buddha appears in the world as an ordinary person possessing the nine worlds. This corresponds to the principle revealed in the Hoben chapter, that common mortals of the nine worlds all inherently possess the world of Buddhahood. It cannot exist apart from the nine worlds, nor vice versa, for both are always inherent in life. This relationship is described as himyo hoben.

Although they both teach the inseparability of Buddhahood and the nine worlds, the Hoben and Juryo chapters are written from different viewpoints. That is, the Hoben chapter reveals that the nine worlds inherently possess Buddhahood, while the Juryo chapter shows that Buddhahood retains the nine worlds. In addition, the Hoben chapter shows Buddhahood only as a potential within people's lives, but the Juryo chapter depicts Buddhahood as a manifest reality in the person of Shakyamuni.

The Juryo chapter reveals that Shakyamuni has been a Buddha since gohyaku-jintengo, a span of time far beyond one's imagination. Nevertheless, although in-calculably long, gohyaku-jintengo is still a finite period. Shakyamuni practiced the Law to become a Buddha at the time of gohyaku-jintengo, but the Law itself is eternal. It has neither beginning nor end, yet it is not an external existence; it is present both in the universe and equally within all our lives.

As Nichiren Daishonin's disciples, we read the Juryo chapter to praise the eternal Buddha who, in the Latter Day of the Law, appeared as Nichiren Daishonin. We likewise read this chapter in praise of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the Law which is the entity of the eternal Buddha.

The eternal life of the Buddha, which is itself the Law, is embodied in the Gohonzon. When we read the Juryo chapter and chant the daimoku, the Buddha's life-state is realized from within our own being, leading us also to eternal Buddhahood.

Back to the Contents